Financial duties of the Auditor include the preparation of the County's
budget from material submitted by its departments and other agencies and issuing
payment for all services, materials and payroll charged to the Clay County.

The office of the County Auditor was created in 1870 as part of
a revamping of county government. The duties of the office covered areas that
had previously been given to the County Judge in 1851, in the first Code of
Iowa, and then to the Clerk of Court in 1861, with the formation of the Board of
Supervisors. The State Legislature added the duties of Commissioner of Elections
in the early 1970ís. The County Auditor is an elected position, with a term of
four years.

The Institute of Public Affairs has labeled the
Auditorís Office as the ďHub of County GovernmentĒ. The Clay
County Auditor and staff are always available to help with your questions and
invite you to visit their offices anytime.

The county auditor
serves in an office which is much diversified. One of the auditorís many duties
is to serve as secretary to the board of supervisors. As such, the auditor has
control over the records of the board. Auditorís election responsibilities
include registering voters, supervising precinct election officials, publishing
election notices, and acting as custodian of poll books. Auditors are
commissioner of elections for school board, city, county, state and federal
elections. Real estate transfers and numerous other records are handled through
the county auditorís office. Lastly, the county auditor does indeed audit bills
or other claims against the county. Warrants in payment are then prepared. The
auditor also maintains accounting records on all appropriations for the countyís
various departments.

The following information has been prepared
for the purpose of acquainting you with the duties and responsibilities of your
County Auditor. No attempt has been made to cover all the functions of this
office. We hope you use this as a reference and an educational guide for
information about your County Auditor.

Budget Central

Along with these financial responsibilities, the Auditorís Office is
considered Budget Central for all government
entities. Schools, Cities, Townships, Agricultural Extension, County
Hospitals, Emergency Management Agency, E911 Service Board, and County
Assessor file their completed budgets with the Auditor. These budgets,
which include the tax asking for each entity, are reviewed by the County
Auditor and then submitted to the State Department of Management. After
the Board of Supervisors hold a public hearing on their budget , the
Auditor also files the certified County Budget with the State Department
of Management.

Clerk to the Board of Supervisors

As Clerk to the Board of Supervisors, the
Auditor may perform a variety of duties depending on the size of the
County. The Auditor may accept petitions, register complaints, or act on
routine business in the absence of the Board. The Auditor often prepares
Board meeting agendas, notifies the media, attends all Board meetings,
keeps and records Board meeting minutes, and publishes the proceedings
in the official County newspapers. The Auditor initiates bid notices,
solicits proposals for County contracts for materials and services, and
receives contract proposals. Official papers dealing with Board of
Supervisorsí business are referenced and maintained by the Auditor.
County Ordinances are prepared, published, recorded, and maintained by
the County Auditor.

Commissioner of Elections

In 1972 the County Auditor was given an additional title of Commissioner of Elections by the legislature. In
addition to federal, state and county elections, the Commissioner of
Elections then assumed the duties of all city, school, and special
elections.

The Commissioner prepares and supervises the printing of ballots
and/or programming of voting machines as well as orders all election
supplies. The Commissioner conducts schools of instructions, according
to law, for all precinct election officials and is responsible for their
employment on election day. The Commissioner also prepares and monitors
the processing of all absentee ballots in order to aid voters who will
not be voting at the polls on election day.

Other duties of the Election Commissioner include:

Acting as Receiving Clerk for nomination papers and public measures
to be placed on the ballot.

Acting as Clerk of the County Board of Election Canvassers and
Special Precinct Board.

County Financial Officer

As the countyís Financial Officer, the
Auditor completes a ďState of the CountyĒ Financial Report at the end of
each fiscal year, which is a Revenue vs Expenditure report showing
available cash reserves. Based on this report and budgets for the
current year, the Auditor disburses all county funds. Claims for payment
for all services and materials rendered and charged to the various
county departments are submitted to this office for payment. The Auditor
is responsible for ďauditingĒ all claims and keeping a complete record
of each transaction. It is the Auditorís responsibility to make sure
that the departments do not exceed the budget appropriation approved by
the Board of Supervisors.

County Registrar of Voters

In 1975 the Auditor became the County Registrar of
Voters with the implementation of a state-wide voter
registration law. The Auditor is responsible for maintaining the current
records of residents desiring to vote and purging the records of those
no longer eligible to vote. The Auditor is then able to prepare the
necessary lists of qualified voters for each election.

County Tax Accountant

The Auditor tabulates the taxable valuations
for each property owner in the county. After applying the proper
exemptions, homestead and military credits, roll backs and other
adjustments to the assessed valuations certified by the Assessorís
Office, the Auditor certifies the ďtaxableĒ valuation of the county to
the State. This computation creates the tax rate from which each
taxpayerís statement is prepared.

After the State returns the certified tax rates for the
above-mentioned taxing entities in the County, the Auditor becomes the
County Tax Accountant and applies these tax
rates to the taxable valuation of each property and then prepares a tax
list showing each taxpayerís share of the total governmental tax asking.
These figures are then certified to the County Treasurerís Office for
collection.

Custodian of the Courthouse

The Auditor is the Custodian of the Courthouse
under the direction of the Board of Supervisors. This responsibility
includes not only general maintenance and repair of the building, but
also issues involving office space, records storage, and disaster
recovery.

Custodian of the Election Returns and Records

As Custodian of the Election Returns and Records,
the Commissioner certifies the results to the state or subdivision
involved and issues certificates of election to the proper persons.

Insurance/Bonds

Insurance policies and surety bonds are
filed and maintained in the Auditorís Office.

Licenses/Permits

The Auditorís office processes various licenses and permits:

Cigarette Licenses
Beer Permits
Liquor Licenses
Fireworks Permits

Other Reporting Requirements

Reports required by the Bureau of Census,
Labor, OSHA, Job Service of Iowa and various other general reports are
prepared by the Auditorís Office.

Overseer of the County Plats

The Auditor is the Overseer of the County Plats.
All documents dealing with the transfer of real estate recorded in the
Recorderís Office are also filed in the Auditorís Office. Each document
is proofed for accuracy and the chain of title researched. The document
is then entered into the Transfer Record. Plat and Transfer Records are
maintained showing the ownership of all parcels of land for taxation
purposes. The Auditor may cause subdivisions to be platted when
necessary and accordingly revises the county plats.

Payroll & Human Resources Manager

All the County payroll is computed and distributed by this office.
Related reports such as FICA, IPERS, State and Federal withholding,
insurance, 457 Deferred Compensation plans, and other deduction reports
are filed with the proper entities. In some counties, the Auditor also
acts as the Human Resources Manager and
handles employee questions dealing with health insurance deductibles and
co-payments, COBRA forms, annuity plans, vacation, sick leave,
Family/Medical Leave, military leave, retirement options. Updating the
Countyís Personnel Policy and job descriptions are also a responsibility
of this office.

Every effort is made to insure accurate information is posted to this
site. However, Clay County does not warrant
or guarantee the accuracy, reliability or timeliness of the
content on this site or content which is referenced by
or linked to this site. Redistribution of data from this site for
commercial purposes is prohibited.